Today marks the 25th anniversary of The Elder Scrolls franchise. That’s a quarter century of giant rats, dungeons, spells, and open-world game design.
Bethesda first invited players to the world of Tamriel on March 25, 1994. The Elder Scrolls: Arena combined randomly-generated small towns and places of interest, along with hundreds of dungeons, in a procedurally-generated world. And it all ran on MS-DOS.
By 2002, the game made the leap to full 3D with The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (which you can download free today only). The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion polished the rough edges found in Morrowind, and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim awed us with its vastness (yeah, the dragons were pretty cool, too).
Just look at the game’s evolution in the banner image above. That does not even cover the full 25-year span of the franchise. Not pictured is The Elder Scrolls Online, an MMO that made its debut in 2014, and the teased but yet-to-be-revealed The Elder Scrolls VI.
If you’re really in the mood for a return to Tamriel, Game Deals 365 reported earlier today on a Bethesda sale, including Elder Scrolls titles, which is running over the course of the next week.
What’s your favorite game in The Elder Scrolls franchise? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below!
